“I will not leave you as orphans…” John 14:18a
Her body was positioned awkwardly with her head cocked to the side. She was lying there in a pile of drool. Her diaper was dirty. She looked miserable. Her eyes begged for someone to hold her, to ease her pain, to love her.
I was appalled. Disgusted. Heartbroken.
This little peanut was special but there she lay all by herself; abandoned at a hospital because her mother didn’t know what else to do. Outcast by a society that believes handicaps or syndromes are a family curse this momma did her best to care for her baby with cerebral palsy. A year and a half had past and she couldn’t do it anymore. So she left her at the place where she felt her daughter would be taken care of.
The hospital.
Except here in Swaziland unless you have a caretaker with you, you don’t get taken care of. At least not well.
As an American nurse I tried not to judge their healthcare system but truth be told I was angry. Angry that this little one was suffering. Angry she wasn’t being cared for. Angry that when I picked her up to hold her, her muscles couldn’t even relax enough to allow her to move from a stiff as a board position.
She didn’t have to live like this.
Last March I had the privilege of holding that little girl on several occasions during my ten days here in Swaziland. When I left I was holding out hope for the American couple that were trying to become her foster parents. It was the only hope I had that this little girl would have a chance.
When I signed up for the race Swaziland was the country that I struggled with most being on my route. I had no desire to come back. I had seen too much that I didn’t like so why should I return?
Last week I was in a morning meeting formulating a plan for ministry that day. The missionary here was telling us about his family preparing to move back to the states and while they are very excited for this next phase of life they are torn because they will have to leave behind a little girl that they are in the process of adopting. This girl he explained is very special, she has cerebral palsy and is about two and a half years old.
My heart sank.
There is no way it could be the same girl.
So I awkwardly interjected “her name doesn’t happen to be Mukelo does it?”
His smile said it all.
It was her.
Almost a year to date I was reunited with the little girl that I cried and prayed over in the hospital. I hardly recognized her. A year of love and care had completely changed her.
As I watched her soon to be family love on her I knew that it was a perfect fit. My heart is elated for this little girl.
She is a miracle. Their story is a miracle, especially in a country that is closed off to foreign adoption. She will get the care she needs in the States all because they stepped up to the plate of loving a little girl who was left to die.
So why did I come back to Swaziland? Why was I placed at the exact site of the missionary that will be adopting Mukelo?
For God to show me that He is still working when I can’t see Him.
Mukelo had not been forgotten when she was lying alone in that hospital bed. God had a plan the whole time. He truly is the Redeemer. She is no longer an orphan.
I would proudly like to introduce you to “Moo Moo” as her new family affectionately calls her.
Notice how she was able to relax in my arms?!?
